German Shepherds Forum banner

Sudden Death - 4 year old German Shepherd

10K views 40 replies 34 participants last post by  Nurse Bishop 
#1 ·
We just lost our much loved, very healthy and happy 4 year old german shepherd to sudden death. He literally died in his tracks during an evening walk. It was heart wrenching, heart breaking, and completely devastating to witness. A necropsy was done and there was no immediate reason found for this beautiful dog to not still be alive and yet he lay dead. Tissue samples of his heart, lungs, liver and spleen were sent out to a veterinary college for further review in the hope some definitive answers can be found. The most likely scenario appears to be tachycardia or a sudden misfiring of his heart. Generally issues of genetic heart problems are discovered early in puppyhood where sudden death occurs with young puppies or those under 1 year old. It is unusual but not unlikely for the genetic issue to surface later and suddenly and without symptoms result in death. One puppy in our dog's litter did die a sudden death when it was only a couple of months old. We had heard the story and felt the pain the owner must have experienced but we had wrongly assumed it was an odd incident that we didn't need to be concerned with and went about our life with our dog. The genetic component only needs to be carried on one parent. If the issue shows up in a litter the breeder needs to be aware that the genetics is there. If a puppy dies of a sudden death in a litter the other puppies and related dogs are at risk even into adulthood. There are steps to find the issue such as looking closely at the health of the breeding pairs by following up on the health of litters and if a problem is possible because a sudden death has occurred then an EKG and electrocardiogram may detect an issue.

There are a ton of things we wish we had known, a ton of would haves, could haves, what ifs, and if only continually flood our grief....but it doesn't change the reality that our dog is gone, our hearts are broken, each sighting of a toy, a treat box, an empty bed, fur that was shedded or left in a brush, and the vacant yard bring on the tears. Our dog should be here and yet he is gone. He left in a instant in front of our eyes..................and now our eyes see everything through tears.
 
See less See more
#2 ·
I am so so sorry for you loss. I can't even imagine your pain.
 
#7 ·
I am so sorry. My heart aches with yours, as one week ago today I also lost my 4 year old to a sudden, unexpected medical death. Losing a pet is never easy, but losing these young dogs without warning is so much harder. We continue to dwell on the regrets and what-ifs, the heartbreak of the empty house and daily moments that are no more. I hope you can find some answers for the tragic loss of your pup. So sorry.
 
#10 ·
I am so sorry. My heart goes out to you.To lose a family member like your pup in the prime of their life and so suddenly is incredibly difficult. My thoughts are with you at this difficult time.
 
#11 ·
I'm sorry for your loss.

Could it have been an aneurism? When I was a kid, my neighbor's Newf was lost to that. Happy, athletic, ran around the house and dropped dead. Terrible thing, and young too.
 
#15 ·
so tragic, I can't imagine the pain you are dealing with. I am so sorry for your loss.
 
#18 ·
At this point aneurysm is not suspected. There seems to be two possibilities and one should be ruled out when tissue testing is completed next week. Most likely scenario is tachycardia or a misfiring of his heart. The remote possibility is Chagas disease caused by the kissing bug of which we have in great numbers. They can and often do carry a parasite that can be deadly and can even cause sudden death in dogs. Usually there would be heart damage that could be seen with the necropsy or noted with symptoms and that was not seen so it becomes less likely and could be ruled out unless the tissue samples show something different.
 
#20 ·
My thoughts, love and light are coming to you and your family. I, too, lost my 10 month old boy this last week to something equally sudden and tragic. The grief is unimaginable, although every person here has gone through it, when they attach themselves to your very soul it's a billion times worse. In a complete mess here and shedding some tears for the others lost this week, your guy included. :'(
 
#24 ·
I want to share what my daughter wrote about her dog on her Facebook yesterday. It is a reminder of how deeply pets effect our lives and for my daughter her dog has been a huge part of her life these last four years as she navigated through her teens. We hope that all breeders realize the lives their puppies effect and make the best efforts to produce healthy and long lived litters. I am sorry I can't share a photo. The thought of trying to search for another dog is overwhelming but also the thought of not having a shepherd is just as overwhelming.

"Exactly one year ago today, I shared this photo of Blade and I on my instagram in light of National Dog Day..... Not knowing that only 359 days later would be the last time I would ever get to see my sidekick, my number one companion, my partner in crime, my best friend, and the love of my life.

Some people's everyday morning routine is to drink coffee or watch the news. For the last 4 years my morning routine always began with a few tosses of a frizbee and Blade running after it. There were a lot of the times he wouldn't bring the frizbee back and I would have to chase him around the yard. He loved doing this because I could never catch him. He was silly like that and I swear he was smarter than I was too! Every night I would walk him around a neighborhood or take him swimming in our pool. He loved both of these things! He even designated himself to be the unofficial lifeguard. He would jump in the pool and bite someone's arm and swim with them to safety. We took him to the beach once. The waves were a little scary for him, so we stuck to chasing the seagulls and eating cheetos. He always managed to make me laugh with the silly things he did. I loved everything about him unconditionally and endlessly. Blade was my reason for getting out of bed in the morning and he made every single day worth living.

But for this year's National Dog Day all I have is a box. A light brown cedar box. A box that contains nothing more than the ashes of memories.... and my broken heart."
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top